Wearable computing: is it just hype? [From the Editor in Chief]

Experience over the past decade has shown that wearable computers can be especially valuable in situations where a mobile user is engaged in tasks such as vehicle maintenance, bridge inspection, or aircraft inspection. Thus, wearable computers have established their first foothold in such industrial applications, where hands-free computer operation provides a compelling advantage. User comfort is a critical design consideration for success in these applications. The key to user comfort is creating small, lightweight, body-conforming designs with long battery life. Unfortunately, this typically means substantially sacrificing computing power. Consequently, a wearable computer typically has less memory, CPU speed, and disk capacity than a desktop or laptop of the same vintage. This limitation in computing power makes augmented reality (AR) one of the most challenging yet intriguing uses of wearable computers.